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Friday,
June 15, 2001, Chandigarh, India   |
Not a routine
protest It’s one-woman rule |
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By Hari Jaisingh
The Prince and I
Economic compulsions before
Musharraf
Women say full-time work is ruining their lives
Umbilical cord blood useful
Shaking can hurt infants’ brains
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Not a routine protest THE US lawmakers on Wednesday gave birth to a unique form of protest against human rights violation. They chose the Taliban's anti-Hindu edict, which requires the minorities in Afghanistan to wear yellow badges as a mark of identity, for giving to the global community a new weapon for fighting the forces of religious intolerance. The members of the US Congress wore yellow badges with the inscription "I am a Hindu" as an expression of solidarity with the target of the Afghan fundamentalists' act of bigotry. Of course most countries expressed shock and anger at the Taliban's edict. But their form of protest followed the usual format of issuing statements for conveying their sense of shock and displeasure against the Taliban's edict. The toothless United Nations was petitioned to make the Taliban fall in line with the sentiments of the global community on the issue. India too issued a strongly-worded statement against the order. And why not? Before the unhappy turn of events the native Hindus and Sikhs took as much pride in their Afghan identity as the Muslim majority of that country. The Taliban leaders' explanation that the order was issued for protecting the minorities from being subjected to the strict Islamic code meant for the majority was, of course, an eyewash. The yellow badge edict is as repulsive as the decision to blow up the centuries-old statue of the Buddha at Bamiyan because Islam forbids idol worship. The Taliban edict reminded the US lawmakers of Hitler's order to the Jews to wear the star of David that resulted in the Holocaust. Be that as it may, the US lawmakers' initiative has important lessons to offer to India and its neighbours. Particularly to groups whose reaction to the Taliban-type action is usually sectarian and not humanitarian. At the height of the Ayodhya movement a section of the Sangh Parivar had coined the slogan "garva sey kaho hum Hindu hain" not necessarily as an expression of the religious identity of the protagonists of the cause. The reaction of the Islamic groups in Pakistan to the demolition of Babri Masjid too was flawed. In the light of the US Congressmen's unique form of support to the human rights of the minorities in Afghanistan the religious hotheads in the subcontinent should at least now do a bit of soul searching. The Pakistanis should ask themselves why they did not react the way the entire US Congress did to the reprehensible edict of Taliban leader Mullah Omar. And right thinking Indians should ask why they did not wear badges with the inscription "I am a Christian" when Staines and his son were torched to death in Manoharpur, Orissa, by a fanatic called Dara Singh. And Nepal, the only Hindu state in the world, too should ask itself questions which only it can answer. |
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It’s one-woman rule WHAT has been happening in Chennai during the past fortnight is alarming. Senior officers have been shunted out to humiliatingly unimportant posts on the slightest suspicion or flimsiest ground. Cases are filed on the basis of manifestly bogus complaints and at least in one case one person has been arrested. Chief Minister Jayalalitha has threatened to prosecute her predecessor and bitter opponent, Mr Karunanidhi, on the charge of illtreating some persons arrested in connection with the Coimbatore blast case. What attests to her vengeful attitude is the investigation of the rotten rice case. The previous DMK government purchased bad quality rice worth Rs 65 crore to provide relief to farmers who had suffered a huge loss because of inclement weather. Ms Jayalalitha spearheaded the pro-agriculturist agitation and now she smells a rat in the operation. Newspapers had reported the low standard of the rice and the former Minister in charge of the operation had promptly accepted the charge but explained that the grain had become unfit for human consumption not because of any hanky-panky but because of bad storage conditions. It is certain that the lady will link Mr Karunanidhi with a rice procurement and direct the pliable police and anti-corruption investigators to prepare a case in which the former Chief Minister can be arrested and detained in prison for some time. The authoritarian side of her rule comes out in the abrupt sacking of three ministers within a month of their appointment and the strange case of Sudhagaran. At first her apologists said that the dismissal was because of their lack of commitment with and ignorance of their departments. But a close scrutiny showed that the sacked three had failed to propitiate Ms Sasikala, the live-in companion of the Chief Minister and she manoeuvred their exit. In other words, Ms Jayalalitha is the uncrowned queen but there is a queen-maker behind the throne. Officials and AIADMK Ministers and MLAs have to worship at two altars. Sudhagaran is a nephew of Ms Sasikala and a disowned foster son of Ms Jayalalitha. It should be a powerful combination and should answer to the Hindi adage, “donon hath mein laddu hai”. Actually he turned out to be an unthinking ambitious upstart, wanting to wrest M.G.Ramachandran’s legacy, presently claimed by Ms Jayalalitha. So he fell out of favour and today faces several charges which seem to have been fabricated at the Poes Garden residence of the Chief Minister. He unsuccessfully tried to become a leader but the farce of a criminal case may propel his career. |
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After gruesome palace events AS
the sequence of recent tragic events in Nepal unfolds — somewhat haltingly and teasingly — more questions are bound to be thrown up about visible and invisible hands behind the massacre. Such is the thickness of the plot that led to the cold-blooded murder of King Birendra, Queen Aishwarya and the entire line of succession of the royal family. This is probably one of the bloodiest chapters of history of monarchy any time and anywhere. What particularly shocked most Indians here and abroad is that such heinous killings should have taken place in a Hindu kingdom. Such bizarre acts have never been part of Hindu ethos. But then in today’s globalised order traditional moorings seem to be in a melting pot. Apparently, some serious aberrations have taken place even in Nepalese society. While we will have to await findings of the two-member high level committee probing the assassination of King Birendra and several members of his family, certain doubts are already in the air about the fairplay in this exercise. The footprints of the gruesome event must have been erased by conspirators, if any. In fact, the indecent haste shown for the funeral of the slain royal family members is a grim pointer to the possibility that there could be more to the killings than the love story of Prince Dipendra and Ms Devyani Rana. Many of questions remain unanswered, including the key issue of the bullet injury at the back of the late prince. Besides, if he was in a state of drunkenness, how he could have managed his targets unless there were some invisible hands behind this macabre plan that was executed ruthlessly? This should give credence to the theory of a palace conspiracy. There could be as many theories as are the number of potential beneficiaries in this blood-soaked drama. It will be improper to draw any hasty conclusion in the absence of solid facts and their confirmation after proper scrutiny. Any speculative exercise will be unfair and self-defeating. For the present, we have, therefore, to wait patiently for the truth. Looking at the events in a broad framework of Kathmandu’s weird diplomatic world, I wonder how well-informed are Indian diplomats and intelligence agencies about happenings there. Though it is a small land-locked kingdom, India has not only traditional bonds of friendship, but also strategic interests in Nepal. However, the weak spot of intelligence-gathering has once again come into focus after the infamous hijacking of the IA plane from Kathmandu airport on December 24, 1999, by the ISI-supported militants to Kandahar. It was one more pathetic tale of the country’s failure on both intelligence and operational fronts. One is not sure whether the right lessons have since been learnt. As it is, we hardly learn from our mistakes. It is no secret that Nepal has been a hotbed of international intrigues. Both China and Pakistan are known to be major players in this arena. The Pakistan embassy at Kathmandu is said to have over 60 per cent of the staff belonging to the ISI. The Chinese too play their secret games. Kathmandu figures high on Beijing’s strategic pursuit. How they operate and go about their diplomatic business of destabilisation is a matter of details which is beyond the scope of this article. While Pakistan and China are active in Kathmandu, certain anti-India postures by the palace and the government are part of Nepal’s diplomacy of twists and turns to promote what is considered the national interests. Not that South Block is to blame for the
neighbour's political and psychological problems. India does not always act like the Big Brother as is generally assumed. If anything, it often behaves like an Indifferent Brother. In fact, the greatest failure of Indian diplomacy has been its inability to properly manage neighbouring nations. There is no coherent and integrated policy towards the neighbours who have only added to the country’s problems globally. What can be the broad parametres of this policy? One, India should reorganise its intelligence network and encourage special studies on various aspects of the neighbouring countries. Even at the academic level, not much initiative is seen in monitoring and understanding the socio-economic, political and psychological factors at play. As is true with regard to Pakistan, we do not have a proper assessment of the Nepali mindset in today’s global setting, especially keeping in view the country’s two traditional not-so-friendly neighbours—China and Pakistan. Two, New Delhi needs a highly professional intelligence network, an objective assessment of happenings and follow-up action to pursue its reasonable national interests without hurting basic interests of the neighbour. Three, South Block needs to deploy sensible and seasoned diplomats and ambassadors in the neighbourhood. The Ministry of External Affairs ought to put Nepal, China, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Bangladesh in the “A” category for the purpose of diplomatic posting. These countries should be put in the same bracket of importance as are Washington, London and Moscow. It is a fact that we have not been consistent in our policies. Certainly not towards Nepal. This is not because our policies have always been wrong, but because we have no clear strategies and goals. Flash in the pan diplomacy cannot work in today’s increasingly complex world. The hard new realities in the neighbourhood call for hard new thinking and hard work. Active and result-oriented diplomacy is not a matter of flying flags or of lavish entertaining. It is a serious business which needs to be taken up with a clear perception of attainable goals and objectives of promoting understanding and legitimate interests. Indeed, the times need far-sightedness, courage and vision. Nepal is said to be the last and only Hindu kingdom. That is why we treat the Nepalese as brothers and have open borders. There are no visas. This is the ultimate demonstration of our closeness. I do not think that we want to tamper with the identity of the Nepalese just as we are not interested in tampering with the identity of the Tamils or Keralites. This is the official position. It is true that there are irritants at the individual level, but that is because men are not perfect. But should we seize on these minor incidents and blow them out of proportion? And yet Nepalese politicians have played politics with bilateral ties. They have tried to play China against India — the worst thing they can do. It is in this process that they have created the Maoist monster in their country. Today these Maoists threaten the very way of life of the people there. They would even like to finish off all traces of the monarchy in the country. India is an open market to the Nepalese. There is free movement of people. Almost everything in India is open to them, including employment in the army. All that we wanted was a little more sensitivity on their part to our problems. Today Kathmandu is a major centre of ISI activities and yet the official position is that there is no ISI in Nepal. By the way, Bangladesh also takes the same position. This is insensitivity. This is not an attitude born of friendly feelings. Nepal is rich in water resources. It is a renewable energy source. Yet, it has been reluctant to cooperate with India in jointly utilising it for our common good — even after the World Bank offered to finance irrigation and power projects. Finally, we come to Pakistan, a country which is like a person suffering from amnesia. Najam Sethi, a well known Pakistani journalist, writes: “After 50 years Pakistan is unable to agree upon who we are as a nation, where we belong, what we believe in, where we want to go, whether we belong to South Asia or to West Asia.... whose version of Islam do we follow.” Now how do we deal with such a complex country? It is hatred of India which seems to have shaped all thoughts and actions of Islamabad. Today, even Americans, once Islamabad’s close ally, say that Pakistan is a failed state. We have put up with its animus for the past 52 years, suffered four wars, and now a proxy war for over a decade. Of course, Indians are broadly a patient lot. They have suffered from pillage and plunder by foreign invaders, lost control of their destiny for a thousand years and yet they are ready to forget and forgive the hurts. We could have also behaved like Israel and punished the neighbours for their affronts. But we have chosen to suffer in patience. Is this acting like the Big Brother? It is for the people and the governments in India’s neighbourhood to coolly reflect on their past failures and seek new avenues for mutually beneficial relationships. At this time of tragedy, it will be worthwhile for Nepal to think on new lines. |
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The Prince and I IT'S
been barely two weeks since we returned from Kathmandu. We woke up one overcast Saturday morning to the heavy circumstances in Nepal. My American friends look at this as a development in a far away historical subtext, perhaps akin somewhat to the way I’d react if say Prince Tippytoes in Tonga had perpetrated a similar situation — more intriguing than tragic, more fantastical than sad. But for the small Nepalese community here far away in Greater Boston, the immediacy and enormity of what has happened continue to bring it indescribable pain. I had met Prince Nirajan for the first time while I was a student at the London School of Economics. He was in his penultimate year at Eton at the time and had come to London along with his two cousin sisters (daughters of now King Gyanendra and Prince Dhirendra, the slain King’s youngest brother and another victim of the carnage) to divert briefly from life at Eton. Chiran, a close friend of the Prince and my classmate at the LSE, had asked me to come along with him. He seemed to implicitly have been “commissioned” with showing the honourable guests a “fine time.” “Ever considered LSE after school?” I had asked the young Prince. “My father wants me to go to Oxford,” he had said seeming long resigned to the paternal diktat. “Depends on my grades,” he added. “I haven’t been doing too well in school.” As if! We talked the night away in an Irish bar in the heart of Covent Garden — in matters relating to life, friends, comedy and school. “Where in Nepal do you live?” the Prince asked me. “Kathmandu,” I said. “You should come over some time,” he said with such nonchalance that I didn’t know whether to chuckle at or be grateful for. “Yeah right, come over! Should I knock on the palace gates when I come over.” The bouncer at The Hippodrome, a nightclub in the middle of Leicester Square drawing large, unsuspecting tourists to its 80s style music and its tacky ambience, stopped the Prince who was then barely 18 and asked him for his ID. I felt like interrupting the big bouncer and saying “Don’t you know silly man, he is the Prince of Nepal.” But the Prince seemed to be savouring his anonymity, moving along in through with the crowds, eager to be one in the many. We never spoke about politics, governance or the role of monarchy. Instead, we walked along eating hot dogs from a street vendor, reciprocating the salutation of strangers, and promising at the end of it all to stay in touch. As it is with these things, we of course never got around to staying in touch. A year ago when I was in London, coincidentally during that time, Chiran received a message from “Neer Jung, an old friend.” By the time we had reckoned it was Prince Nirajan himself, he’d already left. Other than that, I never had an occasion over the years to think much of the Prince and the Princesses. Until few days ago. It is hard to personalise a loss when the whole nation has a claim to the events and circumstances of the last few days that providence has decreed for Nepal. My entire sadness is not that a “friend,” (if I may so call him) is no more but only that if he had had to die, that his death would have come in a similarly unassuming, ordinary and non-abrasive way as I had for that one week in London, personally known his life to be. |
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Economic compulsions before
Musharraf "PAKISTAN belongs to that class of states whose very survival is uncertain,” says Stephen Cohen, one of the well-known American authorities on South Asia. Even Jinnah, the architect of Pakistan, had his doubts about Pakistan’s longevity. He had premonitions of its debacle. Akbar Ahmed, the Cambridge don, asks: “Was Pakistan such a mad idea? Or, was there some sense in it?” The doubts are profound. And more men are giving expressions to it. The Mohajirs, for instance, had the courage to say that it was a “mad idea”, that it was the “greatest blunder in history”. What is it that makes the future of Pakistan so doubtful? I can advance three reasons: (1) discovery that religion is not a strong binding force (2) lack of a civilisational binding force and (3) lack of a common economic interest and viability. I will take up here only the economic aspects of Pakistan. And the worst judgement has come from Shahid Javed Burki, a former Vice-President of the World Bank. He fears that the entire support system of the Pak economy has collapsed. How to salvage Pakistan from the wreck it is in is the main preoccupation of men like General Musharraf. But this is not possible without peace with India. And with the world too. India is eight times the size of Pakistan and its GNP is three times the GNP of all its neighbours put together. There can be no parity. Continuing conflict with India, it must be obvious, will at the end bring Pakistan to the dust. Nuclear bombs cannot compensate for the economic weakness of Pakistan. Musharraf told The Guardian recently that his main aim was to revive the economy and that he would stay on for as long as it took to get this job done. Musharraf believes that the economic salvation of Pakistan lies in Central Asia and the Gulf. He wants to turn Pakistan into a “hub” (his expression) for the distribution of gas and oil of the Gulf and Central Asia. He says: “God has given us this strategic location.” The importance of this is emerging fully now, he says. He gives great importance to the laying of gas and oil pipelines. He affirms that Pakistan’s foreign policy is influenced by these objectives. He is right. Geography has given Pakistan some permanent advantages. (One should not overstress it.) India is the largest consumer of oil and gas in the region. And if the supplies come via Pakistan, Pakistan will benefit by millions of dollars yearly as transport fee. What is more, it can itself take advantage of these supplies. But all this depends on relations with India. If India is hostile, no MNC will touch any project. Musharraf is keen to get the pipeline projects started. There are three proposals: from Central Asia (i.e. from Turkmenistan), from Qatar and from Iran. Once these projects are complete, Pakistan will be one of the major beneficiaries. This is why it is unlikely to disrupt the supplies. What is more, it will not want to antagonise the Gulf countries and Central Asia. But to go back to the crisis that Pakistan is facing today. West Pakistan was the most developed region of India before partition. It had the best infrastructure — roads, rails, irrigation system and ports. Punjab and Sindh has food surplus. So Pakistan began well. For forty years, it had a growth rate of 6 per cent per year against India’s 3 per cent. Although Pakistan’s saving rate was a mere 10-12 per cent, its investment came to 20 per cent because of remittances and loans from the IMF and the World Bank. What is more, it was the recipient of economic and military assistance from America from 1953 onwards. Thus Pakistan was the envy of the developing world. But all that is history. Pakistan has run down its assets. It is at present going through its worst economic life. It has become a net importer of food. The World Watch Institute says that by 2050 Pakistan’s per capita availability of cultivable land will be no more than 0.03 hectare, which will force it to import half its food. At the back of this crisis is the population explosion. According to Mr Burki, in ten years the population of Pakistan will be 170 million. Of them, he says, 80 million will be living below the poverty line. Others estimate that by 2050 the population will go up to 500 million and that half of them will be living below the poverty line. Such are the dire prospects. According to Mr Burki, the best years of Pakistan were over in 1989. Since then all support systems of the economy began to collapse one by one. The World Bank and the IMF have forced Pakistan to close down thousands of sick units. The growth of the economy has come down to 3.25 per cent. With 500 million population, it is feared, Pakistan will be compelled to look for living space, first of all in Afghanistan and Central Asia. This has rung alarm bells in Afghanistan and Central Asia. The foreign debt of Pakistan is now around $ 37 billion. Pakistan has had to reschedule the debt servicing several times of late. Pakistan spends 70 per cent of its internal revenue to service the domestic debt. The rest is spent on the administration of the country. As a result, the whole defence outlay is raised from the public as loans. It is obvious there is little here for education and medicare. As a result, the Jamaat has taken over the education of the country. With forex reserves dropping to one billion dollars, the country is facing a continuing crisis. This is largely because of the evasion of Customs and Duties. Much of the import is now handled by the Afghan mafia through smuggling, in which case it pays nothing to the state. The World Bank has estimated that the government is losing over a hundred billion rupees yearly. Musharraf tried to block this smuggling, but was warned off by the jehadis, who get a share of the loot from the smugglers. Musharraf’s financial salvation thus lies in cutting the defence expenditure. This has been advised by the IMF and the World Bank. But can he do it? Can he win over other generals? In any case, unless he chooses the way of peace with India, he cannot cut the military expenditure. But peace with India is anathema to the generals and to the para-military forces, especially the jehadis. Perhaps Musharraf is genuine in his desire for peace. But what will come of his talks with Mr Vajpayee, is not certain. My own feeling is: he may try to sell the idea of the pipeline projects to Vajpayee. If so, we must accept it — no doubt with iron-clad guarantees of security. |
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Women say full-time work is ruining their lives BRITISH
women would quit work en masse to return home to look after their families, if they could, according to a new survey published that runs directly counter to government policy and the social trends of recent decades. Just 9 per cent of working women would choose to work full-time, and this figure falls to 4 per cent of those with pre-school children. Almost 80 per cent would stop full-time employment immediately if they could. Virtually all working mums - 91 per cent - take the largest responsibility for bringing up the children, and fully three quarters of working mothers believe their children suffer academically and emotionally if both parents work full time. A similar proportion believes that having both partners working leads to the breakdown of marriage. The 5,000 women surveyed by health magazine Top Sante in conjunction with a British health insurer said holding down a job played havoc with their relationships with their partner, particularly with regard to sex, and mitigated against their children’s success at school. As many as 93 per cent of the women said they were stressed by balancing the demands of a career with raising a family. Those surveyed — 60 per cent of whom were mothers — were critical of their partners when it came to housework. Eighty per cent said men did not pull their weight. Escaping stress Women’s dissatisfaction with work led many to take time off, the survey found. More than half said they took time off to “escape stress or because they feel unwell due to stress”, clocking up an average of 12 days off a year. Top Sante magazine editor Juliette Kellow said the study showed women with families found full-time work “physically, emotionally and mentally” draining. “The government wants to encourage as many women as possible into full-time work, but this survey clearly shows this is blatantly not what most women want, especially those with families,” she said. “The government needs to recognise that most women with babies or young children would rather have a well-salaried ‘career job share’, or dare we say it, be a full-time mum,” Kellogg said. Among the complaints listed by working women were that companies made little or no provision for women with children, by providing creches, for example. Sex lives Women said their sex lives were negatively affected by work. On average the working woman has sex five times a month, and two thirds would like to increase the frequency. Thirteen per cent said they had had an affair with their boss, and 77 per cent acknowledged flirting in the office. Two thirds of working women find alcohol relaxing, with 46 per cent regularly relaxing with a glass of wine after a day at work and a further 32 per cent doing so occasionally. Stress relievers for working women in order of preference include shopping, meeting a friend, having their hair done, drinking wine, visiting a beauty salon and eating chocolate. The British government is examining proposals for women to be paid a state income for the first three years of their children’s lives.
DPA |
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Umbilical cord blood useful BLOOD
from a newborn’s umbilical cord, once discarded as medical waste, can rebuild the blood supply of adults with leukemia and other fatal blood diseases, according to a study in today’s New England Journal of Medicine. The technique, which works even if the donor and the recipient are not a perfect match, appears to be safer than getting a bone marrow transplant from an unrelated donor. Doctors have experimented with using umbilical cord blood cells for transplants because the cells are capable of rebuilding, albeit slowly, the body’s blood supply. In addition, the cells are so immature, doctors hoped they would be accepted by the new host with less chance of rejection. Among children, that hope has been borne out. Studies have already shown that the treatment is effective for youngsters with various life-threatening illnesses. Until now, researchers have not been sure if the treatment would work in adults, whose immune systems tend to be less tolerant of mismatched tissue. But a research team led by Dr Mary Laughlin of Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland gave umbilical cord blood to 68 patients ages 17 to 58, all with life-threatening blood diseases. To prepare for the transplant, doctors destroyed the defective bone marrow, where blood cells are produced, with radiation or drugs. The key success of the work was that the donated tissue began producing blood cells in 90 per cent of the recipients. Umbilical cord blood from an unrelated donor “is a feasible alternative source” of cells for replacing diseased bone marrow. Forty months after their transplants, 19 patients were alive; 18 had no trace of their original disease. Seventeen deaths were attributed to the treatment used to destroy the defective marrow and 22 died from infection. Four had a relapse and three developed a different type of cancer. One of the biggest risks of the procedure is that the new blood cells will launch an attack on the body, a condition known as graft versus host disease or GVHD. Severe GVHD appeared in only 20 per cent of the patients, while the normal rate is 35 to 55 per cent among people who receive a bone marrow transplant from an unrelated adult donor.
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Shaking can hurt infants’ brains EVEN non-violent shaking of an infant or young baby could accidentally cause brain damage and death, New Scientist magazine said. Researchers at the Royal London Hospital in England, who conducted one of the largest and most detailed studies of suspicious brain damage in children, said serious injuries are not only caused by violent movements or injuries to the head. But they added that normal interaction between an adult and child, such as bouncing babies on knees, would not lead to serious injuries. Jennian Geddes, a neuropathologist at the London hospital, said nerve fibres in the baby’s neck that control breathing can be damaged by unsupported movements of the child’s head and can lead to a lack of oxygen and brain swelling. “The research...calls into question the scientific evidence behind many convictions for killing infants and could open the way for a wave of appeals,’’ the weekly science magazine said. The research may make it more difficult for courts to determine whether injuries are caused by abuse or negligence. Shaken baby syndrome made headlines in 1997 when British nanny Louise Woodward was convicted of killing a baby boy in Massachusetts by shaking him violently. The London scientists studied 53 children who had died of suspected deliberate injuries. Their research, which will be published in the neurology journal Brain, showed the kind of damage that would have been caused by violent shaking or a direct blow to the head in only two of 37 babies who were less than a year old. Three quarters of the young babies died because they had stopped breathing. Geddes and her team found damage in these babies where the brain meets the spinal cord. It is a particularly vulnerable spot in young babies because the neck muscles are very weak and their heads are quite large. Stretching or damage to the nerves at this point can cause pressure in the skull to rise as the body tries to compensate for the lack of oxygen. The damage that results is similar to that caused by violent shaking but a new technique can spot subtle differences between the two types of injuries.
Reuters |
MR and Mrs V.D. Rishi, who have been giving a series of demonstrations in spirit-communication at the residence of Pandit Thakore Dut Sharma of Amrit-Dhara Pharmacy, Lahore, are invited to give private demonstration at the residence of several leading Hindus of the city. These demonstrations have been keenly observed by numerous visitors interested in the subject, and some of the results have, we learn, been of a startling character. Detailed accounts of the process adopted at the seances have appeared in the vernacular press, the editors being specially invited to observe and note the results. |
"Swami, you have no idea of time", remarked an impatient American devotee, afraid of missing a steamer. "No", retorted Swamiji calmly, "You live in time; we live in eternity." **** Western languages declare that man is a body and has a soul. Eastern languages declare that he is a soul and has a body. **** Brahmacharya should be like a burning fire within the veins. **** Struggle to realise yourself without a trace of emotion!... Watch the fall of the leaves, but gather the sentiment of the sight within some later time! Mind! No loaves and fishes! No glamour of the world! All this must be cut short. It must be rooted out. It is sentimentality - the overflow of the senses. It comes to you in colour, sight, sound and associations. Cut it off. Learn to hate it. It is utter poison.! **** Learn to be the witness. If two dogs are fighting on the street and I go out there, I get mixed up in the fight; but if I stay quietly in my room, I witness the fight from the window. So learn to be the witness. **** Can you see your own eyes? God is like that. He is as close as your own eyes. He is your own, even though you cannot see Him. **** I say there is but one remedy for one too anxious for the future - to go down on his knees. —
From The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda, Vol. V and Vol. IX. Sayings and Utterances. ***** Our prayers and pleadings are quite useless, unless these are supported by all effort on our part to push the door open... Our prayers are not sincere and true..... It is submerged in lust and greed.... It constantly lives in vanity and pride... Unless the yearning to meet Him is intense
and true, He remains silent and unattentive. — Sardar Bahadur Maharaj Jagat Singh, The Science of the Soul, Part IV, 39. |
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